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Reporter Robert Rogers has been covering Richmond for years, first for the blog Richmond Confidentialand now for the Contra Costa Times. That means he understands a lot of the back story behind the hearings taking place right now. KALW's Ben Trefny got in touch with Rogers at his office and asked him about the role the refinery plays in Richmond.

More than 400 people have filled Richmond’s Civic Auditorium. You can spot the Chevron workers. They’re wearing blue and white shirts saying “Richmond Proud” and waving signs that read “Modernize Now” – signs supplied by Chevron.

For nearly a decade, Chevron and its neighbors in Richmond have been fighting over a proposal to retool the oil company’s refinery. Most everyone agrees the plant needs to be modernized. But they differ about how.

What does it mean to confront the growing Bay Area’s energy needs in a time of climate crisis? Can we have power without pollution? Host David Onek and guests discuss visionary community-based solutions and organizing in Richmond and beyond.

Photo by John Orvis, a Bay Area based photojournalist and event photographer / photo by John Orvis | www.johnorvis.com

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August 6 marks the one year anniversary of the Chevron refinery fire in Richmond. The fire, caused by a leak in a 40-year old pipe, sent a plume of smoke across nearby neighborhoods, leading thousands of residents to eventually seek medical care.

One year ago, an explosion at the Chevron refinery in Richmond sent a plume of black smoke into the air and more than 15,000 people to local hospitals. Now, as the city still tries to assess the total damages from the incident, new concerns have erupted that the refinery and others in the Bay Area may start processing significant amounts of tar sands oil.

Toll-takers on the Golden Gate Bridge are on their way out – human toll-takers, that is. Today marks the first day of a testing period for a new all-electronic toll collection system. In sixty days – if all goes according to plan – motorists crossing into San Francisco will have to use an automated payment system, or they will receive a bill by mail after the bridge authority takes a photo of their license plate.

Chevron Corporation reaped $26.9 billion in profits last year. That's right: $26.9 billion. Yet for reasons still to be explained, the San Ramon-based company declined to spend any of that cash on replacing a small, aging section of pipe at its Richmond refinery during an inspection last fall. Last week, that eight-inch pipe began to leak oil profusely before igniting a fireball that could be seen throughout the Bay Area and unleashing a giant plume of smoke that sickened hundreds of nearby residents.

Pollution and the environment have always been big issues for Californians. A statewide survey conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California last month showed that approximately half the state’s residents see air pollution as a serious threat to their health.

Among African Americans and Latinos, concern is even greater. The majority of those polled in these groups believe that people in lower-income areas are disproportionately affected by air pollution.

If you saw the lead story of today's San Francisco Chronicle, you would have seen a photo of a long line of people outside a lawyer's office in Richmond, near a sign that says: "Chevron Claims Filed Here."

Last night’s fire at the Chevron refinery in Richmond put city residents in a state of panic. The fire sent up a huge plume of black smoke, stopping traffic, closing bridges, and shutting down BART stations.

The large-scale chemical fire still has local residents concerned for their health and safety. Many say they heard about the fire late, and that the multi-lingual phone system that is supposed to alert the diverse communities of Richmond in case of a disaster didn’t work.